For brothers Olumakinde, Oludamini, and Ayodeji Ogunnaike, their academic journeys began in the classrooms of The Charter School of Wilmington. Today, each has built a career in research and higher education, but they all point back to their time at Charter as the place where their curiosity was encouraged and their academic interests began to take shape.
For Olumakinde, Charter provided an environment where exploring ideas felt natural. He and his brothers all participated in Science Olympiad throughout their four years at CSW, using the competition as a way to dive deeper into topics they were learning in class. Olumakinde also competed in Science Bowl and spent time tutoring after school with Mrs. Potocki.
What he remembers most, though, are the teachers who pushed him to think more deeply about the subjects he loved. One moment that stayed with him happened during AP Calculus. When Mr. Satalino noticed Olumakinde explaining integrals to a friend, he asked him to stand up and walk the class through the concept.
“In the moment I was terrified,” Olumakinde recalls, “but it helped spark a lifelong love for teaching and breaking down complicated topics.”
Other teachers created opportunities that went far beyond the traditional classroom. Mr. Stover developed an independent study optics course for Olumakinde and several classmates, where they explored advanced physics topics while helping prepare labs and assignments for other students. During Olumakinde’s senior year, Charter leaders helped secure funding for equipment that allowed the school to introduce a new fluid dynamics course, giving him the chance to explore subjects rarely available at the high school level.
“In some ways it was more enlightening than some of my structured classes,” he says. “Instead of studying for a test, I was learning how to explore and refine my understanding for myself and for others.”
After graduating from Charter, Olumakinde attended Harvard University, where he studied physics and mathematics. The hands-on and creative scientific work he experienced at Charter prepared him well for research in college. After completing his degree, he earned a fellowship to pursue a master’s degree in the philosophy of physics at Oxford University, where the tutorial system helped shape his own teaching philosophy.
He later completed a PhD in theoretical condensed matter physics at MIT and returned to Harvard as a resident tutor, advising students in areas such as physics, mathematics, and fellowship applications. Today, Olumakinde is a President’s Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of California, Berkeley, where he continues his research and hopes to become a professor.
His older brothers followed their own paths into academia.
Oludamini Ogunnaike, who graduated from Charter in 2003, attended Harvard College, where he initially focused on physics before realizing that many of the questions that interested him most were philosophical. He eventually completed a double major in Cognitive Neuroscience and African Studies.
A traveling fellowship later took him to Mali, where he spent a year studying djembe drumming while traveling to historic centers of scholarship such as Timbuktu and Djenné. The experience deepened his interest in African intellectual traditions and religious philosophy. Oludamini returned to Harvard to complete a PhD in African Studies and Religion, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at Stanford University. He later joined the faculty at the College of William and Mary and now teaches at the University of Virginia.
Ayodeji Ogunnaike, who graduated from Charter in 2006, also attended Harvard College. He initially planned to become a high school French teacher, but his interests gradually expanded to include broader questions about language, culture, and religion. He ultimately completed a double major in African Studies and Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations.
After graduating, Ayodeji received a traveling fellowship that allowed him to spend a year in Nigeria, where he apprenticed with a traditional Yoruba diviner and priest. The experience shaped his understanding of African religious traditions and storytelling. He later returned to Harvard to complete a PhD in African and African American Studies. Since then, he has taught at Bowdoin College, the University of Virginia, and most recently McGill University in Montreal, where he currently serves as a professor.
Being brothers has played an important role in their journeys. Olumakinde entered Charter already aware of the reputation his older brothers had built at the school.
“My brothers are seven and ten years older than me,” he says. “Their legacy preceded me coming into Charter. Nearly every teacher knew me through them.”
He found himself taking many of the same classes with many of the same teachers, retracing parts of their path while also discovering his own interests. “Their example was always a beacon to follow and a standard that kept my expectations high.”
The intellectual exchange between them continues today. Oludamini and Ayodeji are currently finishing a book together on Yoruba mythology, and the three brothers frequently share articles, ideas, and drafts of their work with one another.
Looking back, they all share a similar message for current Charter students who enjoy learning but may not know exactly where it will lead.
Olumakinde encourages students to take advantage of the teachers around them.
“Don’t be afraid to explore and ask your teachers for guidance,” he says. “After finishing AP Bio, Chem, and Physics I still didn’t know exactly where my passions would lead. I was able to explore topics like organic chemistry, modern physics, and fluid mechanics because of teachers who were willing to invest that time.”
He also credits research opportunities for helping him clarify his interests. While at Charter, he conducted summer research at the University of Delaware in materials science and chemical engineering, an experience that helped him realize how often physics appeared as the underlying principle behind the work he was doing.
Oludamini believes curiosity should guide the process. “Follow your curiosity,” he says. “It is alright to not know exactly where you will end up. Learning is a lifelong journey, and sometimes your passions develop in unexpected ways.”
Ayodeji shares similar advice with his own students. “It is important to find the things that you truly love and pursue them,” he explains. “Those passions do not always have to define your career, but they can make the experience of learning much more meaningful.”
Despite the different directions their work has taken them, all three brothers remain grateful for the foundation they received at Charter. Olumakinde says the school helped prepare him to feel comfortable among some of the most academically prepared students in the country.
“I could not be more proud to represent CSW,” he says. “It helped shape the scientist, teacher, and person I am today.”
For Oludamini and Ayodeji, the influence shows up in their own classrooms. Many of the teaching approaches they use today were inspired by the educators they encountered at Charter. The investment those teachers made in their students is something they now try to pass on to the next generation.
Years later, the lessons they learned at Charter continue to guide their work, their teaching, and their shared commitment to learning.